Special Person of the Day

Today Karla was the "Special Person of the Day" in her class. She got to sit in a special spot, be a line leader, and bring something from home to show her class. Ever since the first day of school she knew what she was going to take when it was her turn to be the special person - Oso. From what she told me I think it went well. She told me before class that she was excited and kind of nervous. She told the class that her parents gave her Oso when she was a baby in Guatemala. She showed them his magnetic hands and how he can be a bracelet on her wrist. She also told them that "oso" means "bear" in Spanish. I really wish I could have been a fly on the wall!!!

Here is a picture of Karla this past weekend at Grandma and Grandpa's house. Aidan is in the background.

These two pictures are from a few weekends ago. Two little princesses.

Akron Marathon Relay

This picture was taken shortly before the 7am start of the race. Eric started us off, then Dad, then Rachel, then me, and then a coworker of Eric's. We missed Kevin this year - unfortunately he was sick. Jason and I have been spectator's for several years and finally this year I participated! It was fun! Can't wait to do it again next year.
THE TEAM (minus one). Rachel, me, Dad, Eric.


During the marathon there is a Kids Fun Run. Karla watched her cousins run last year. She got to run this year with her Daddy close behind. Audra and Tio Eric ran with them too. Eric starts the marathon relay and then goes and runs the kids 1 mile run. :) Jason said that Karla ran the entire mile without stopping. She was very proud of herself and told me all about it later. She got a shirt and a medal she really enjoys showing off.



Karla and Audra with Zippy.

Unfortunately Karla and Jason didn't make it to see me finish my leg of the race. They tried but got there about 15 minutes after I was done. BUT my mom was there! She was the first spectator near the end of my run (it was through a park so there weren't places for spectators to watch). It was a memorable moment. We were pretty happy to see each other! I was just thinking about how hard this was, then I saw her, perked right up and finished strong! Dad was there at the relay point with our last relay team member so we could find each other (we'd never met before). So it was a great end to my run. Our whole team did really well, in my opinion. :) We were in it to have fun - and I think we succeeded.

Update

Karla is LOVING preschool. She has really hit it off with one of the girls in her class and she's already invited to two upcoming birthday parties. The first few days I picked her up she was visibly disappointed to see me. I think she heard me tell enough people that, that now she makes a production of being disappointed to see me and having to go home. I am truly glad that she loves school so much. Jason and I enjoy hearing her talk about things she has learned...when she is in the mood to tell us.

Today is the first day I haven't had an appointment or tried to cram a lot of things into the time she is in preschool. The first two days of her going to school were hard for me but I am totally adjusted now. :)

Here are some pictures I uploaded a few weeks ago.

Karla enjoying our last visit to the pool.



Karla standing proudly beside her new fish Nemo. We did get a new fish the day after her first fish died. We encouraged her to get a Beta fish b/c they are easy to take care of and usually live a long time. She had fun picking him out. She wanted to name this one Nemo too. Almost every night when we go in her room she says "Nemo is still alive! I thought he might be dead." She's thankful everyday that he is still alive. I'll have to get a better picture...one where you can actually see Nemo.

Pumping!

Karla pumped her legs on the swing for the first time today. She has tried all summer but finally got the coordination today. She pumped for 40 minutes straight! She talked and giggled the entire time too! It was great...I got a chair and sat in front of her swing and just listened and watched. It was a beautiful sunny day and we spent a few hours outside playing together this morning.

Karla has been wanting to have "makeovers" for a while so we finally did it this afternoon. Here is a picture of her with her make-up. I didn't take a picture of what I looked like when she was done with me. :) Even though Oso is with us a lot less (doesn't even always make it into the car when we go places!) he had to get in this picture.

My Preschooler

Today was the first day of preschool!

I love this girl so much. I am so blessed to have her.

Here she is with her big backpack. I had envisioned a Dora, Princess, or other cutesie little girl backpack but she was positive this is the one she wanted. The day we bought it I was fighting back tears because I felt like we skipped the little, little kid backpacks and went straight for this one...complete with a place for an iPod, cell phone, etc., etc - things she won't be using (I hope!) for some time to come!


Here is Karla with her friend Josh and his little brother outside the preschool.

When the preschool doors were opened Karla took off without really waiting for me, Jason, or Grammy. She was ready!

I know this picture is blurry but I still like it. Karla had already checked in and was heading for the toys when I told her she had to give us hugs before we left. A little reluctantly she came over to hug us....but it was a great hug!



This is Karla when I picked her up after school. Literally bouncing off the ground with excitement! Her Twinkle Toe shoes (which she is very proud of) are off the ground. She hopped and danced out of the school.

After telling us about preschool and having a quick snack Karla had her first dance class. We tried a new studio over the summer for a one week class and are going to try it this year rather than our old place. Grammy and Jason got to see the new studio.

Next we went to Chik Fil A for a celebratory dinner!

Then home for what I hope will be a traditional first-day-of-school cake. This year, I made a pink crayon cake. My own invention. Next year I think I will have to try making it before the night before school starts! The P on the cake is for preschool. :)

What a day!!! Tomorrow we're just doing preschool. :)

Preschool Open House

Today I got to go to preschool with Karla. It was an open house and we just stayed for an hour. It was just for play time/socializing. As soon as we got there I talked to Karla's teachers about her asthma since it has been extremely bad the past 2 weeks. Karla took off to play with some kids she recognized. She didn't care if I talked to other parents or went in a different room. She just did her own thing and played with the other kids. When it was time to go (and yes, we were one of the last families there) she said she was sad because she never wanted to leave. Then we got in the car and she said, "I'm just asking - (what she says when she thinks what she is about to say might not go over well with us) - when do I get to go to preschool without you?" I was able to tell her "tomorrow!" Made me happy and sad all at the same time. She is very excited for the big day tomorrow. I think I am too...

It is hard to know how to dress her. It was 98 on Saturday and then in the 60s earlier this week. I think it was in the 70s today. She is also not supposed to wear dresses to school so they don't have to worry about "nice" clothes getting dirty and so they can play on scooters and bikes without worrying about dresses getting stuck. I didn't realize it would be a bit challenging to find clothes that don't involve a dress or skirt. I still don't know what she is wearing tomorrow...

She found the dollhouses and people right away. They even had princesses for the dollhouse. I'm not going to post a few other pictures that I got since other kids are in them.

Right before we left the house. Oso stayed in the car while we were in school.

Preschool?!?!?

Tomorrow Jason and I go to preschool orientation (without Karla). Her first day is rapidly approaching. So hard to believe. Is she really old enough?

I was really struggling with her going to preschool and still probably will a little bit. BUT I know she is ready and will love it! Also, this summer we have been fortunate to meet a few families that will have children at the same preschool. Karla's one friend Eliana is in her class and her friend Josh is in the other class that meets at the same time. The two classes do a few things together.

This past Thursday my friend Natalie (Eliana's mom) invited all the girls that are going to be in Karla's class over to her house for lunch and play time. I was so, so thankful. Karla is comfortable at Natalie's house and was excited to meet the other girls. There are 3 "new" girls, including Karla, that we know of. The others went to preschool at the same school as 3 year olds. So, Natalie had 7 girls at her house. Natalie knows how I've felt this summer and sent me a text after Karla had been at the get-together a while. She told me that Karla had hit it off with one of the other girls and the girl had asked Karla to be her BFF. After an explanation of what BFF stood for, Karla agreed! It made me so happy! After a few hours I went to pick Karla up. She was happily playing with a few of the girls and then saw me walking across the yard. She stood up, put her head down, slouched her shoulders and started walking towards me. I asked her what was wrong and what happened. I started mentally scolding myself for being gone so long and then she looked up at me, with tears in her eyes and said "I'm afraid you are going to tell me it is time to go." "Go play longer! I'll talk with Natalie" I said. So, we stayed a little longer. :)